


And don't you stop the music, get into it. (Won't you dance with me?)

by HydenLynch



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-02
Updated: 2020-06-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:01:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24508825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HydenLynch/pseuds/HydenLynch
Summary: Obligatory crying and comfort in the rain because we all know that's the good stuff./This is a Carlos and Jane fic that I was working on in between all of my fall classes and only just now finalized and posted it oops.Title is from Lose It by Oh Wonder
Relationships: Jane/Carlos de Vil
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	And don't you stop the music, get into it. (Won't you dance with me?)

Carlos had always been neutral towards the rain.

On the Isle of the Lost, rain typically left everything freezing and miserable, so it was usually his queue to head inside. No matter how unappealing indoors might be.

Plus It always left Cruella feeling sore due to the pressure change, meaning more overall headaches for him.

But on Auradon, the rain left a sweet smell in the air and the grass glistened with dew. Princesses sang songs about love and their dreams in the rain and princes defeated dragons and inner demons in the rain. So naturally he'd enjoy Auradon rain quite a bit more.

This particular summer shower was leaving him feeling relaxed as he typed away at his keyboard. Student council had asked him if he'd be willing to help them with setting up an online voting booth for Prom King and Queen. Naturally he had jumped at the chance to play with code and bury his feet in a thick blanket.

And then Evie and Lonnie burst into the room.

"Does every person in this school have a key to my room or...?" But neither of the girls acknowledged his remark, instead stomping forward with steely looks in their eyes.

Carlos closed his laptop, sensing the seriousness in the air.

"Did something happen? You guys look like you just saw a pig grow wings and fly away." Then again, he had a talking dog and a friend who could transform into a dragon.

Evie bit her lip, hugging herself, and Lonnie leaned forward to grab onto his arm, "You need to go talk to Jane."

Carlos instantly stood up, disregarding his laptop that slid and flipped onto the bed, "Why? What's going on you guys?"

Evie walked over and grabbed onto his other arm, a lot more gently than Lonnie, "Carlos... Your girlfriend is crying on the front steps of the school and-...and we can't get a thing out of her."

He froze, the prospect that Jane was crying being almost hard to believe.

Sure she had her mopey moments and she'd pout from time to time. But crying was something she hated to do so publicly.

He knew now why the two girls had come to get him.

Jane had only let a select few see her cry.

Her mother, Audrey, and her boyfriend.

Most people didn't even know how to act with her when she wasn't crying. Tears added a whole new level of detachment that he knew she didn't want.

Carlos was half-dragged and half fast-walking to wherever Jane was in the school. "Tell me you guys didn't just leave her alone in the rain." He said, Evie flinched at his rarely used stern tone.

"Of course not!" Lonnie fired before directing her attention to right in front of her. "Mal's with her."

Carlos stared at her blankly for a second before leaning his head back and groaning, "Aagh that's somehow worse!" He began to pick up the pace, now dragging the two girls behind him.

_'Front steps. Front steps.'_

Carlos knew the layout of this school backwards and upside down but his thoughts were a frenzy as he pictured Mal standing at arms length away from Jane and saying something like, "Are you like... _sad_ sad?" While his girlfriend was sobbing.

Lonnie scoffed, "It's not like we had a lot of options man. It was either her or me."

"Or Evie!" Carlos yelled back.

"I suggested I stay behind but Mal just told me to go get you." Evie replied, panting heavily.

Carlos quickly slowed down and looked back at her, now wasn't the best time to forget Evie never went anywhere without heels.

"I'm sorry..." He said, waiting for her to catch her breath, "I'm just...worried." Evie nodded and gave him a sympathetic smile.

"Mal's just trying to be more empathetic... I'm sure she's doing her best." As reassuring as Evie's words were, there was still a clear glimmer of worry in her eyes and they shared a knowing glance. "We should hurry..." Evie said with a sigh and Carlos nodded.

Lonnie said nothing, she liked to think she was close to the VKs but she definitely didn't have the unspoken familial bond the four of them carried. She clearly didn't understand Mal the same way Carlos and Evie did.

As they twirled through corridors and narrowly missed crashing into other students, Carlos began to wonder just what could make Jane breakdown.

She had been perfectly sunny this morning when they got breakfast.

She had cut her pancakes into little hearts and that was something that would haunt his thoughts; because _oh my gosh I really am dating a fairy aren't I?_ He swiped a couple of the hearts from her plate, giggling like a child at the way her cheeks turned red, another fairy thing. They had been interrupted by Uma letting out an exaggerated gag as she walked past their table.

But when they parted she had still been practically glowing.

Not a fairy thing, more of a Jane thing.

Carlos was brought out of his warm daydream by the spray of cool rain sprinkling his face.

And that was when he saw her, long brunette waves and pastels several feet ahead of him. She was perched on the top step that led into the tourney field, no way to keep the rain from drenching her.

"H-..How long has she been out here?" He turned back to look at the two girls.

Evie bit her lip and Lonnie shook her head before saying, "Who can say? The three of us found her out here bawling like no tomorrow and she wasn't really telling us anything."

"We couldn't get her to stand up..." Evie added, expression changing as she motioned for Carlos to turn around again.

He complied and saw a thoroughly soaked Mal trudging toward them.

There was a clear scowl on her face and Carlos could see that she was shivering, "Glad someone finally showed up with the cavalry. I've been freezing in this hell for like ten minutes!"

Her brows furrowed and she crossed her arms, as if demanding an explanation for waiting so long. But that sour look remained for only a few moments before instantly dissipating, not expecting Carlos to scowl right back.

His gaze locked onto Jane's drooped shoulders and he only needed to suck in a deep breath before brushing passed Mal and into the storm. "I hope you didn't make things worse..." He mumbled as he walked away, hearing the beginning of a retort from the girl before it was snuffed out, by Evie no doubt. The audience they had was melted away by the rain and the ache in his heart as he now saw a clear shaking of her shoulders.

Those shakes confirming all the things he had already known.

He bit his lip in the hopes of keeping it stiff, thinking about those heart-shaped pancakes.

The closer he got, the more he began to recognize the clear heave of sobs floating in the humid air.

Without much prompting, he unzipped his leather jacket and shrugged out of it - careful to keep the inside dry. When Carlos was about a step behind her, he swooped the jacket around and draped it over Jane's shoulders; still not saying a word.

The rain was beginning to streak down his face and his back, he tried to not let it get to him.

He heard her let out a soft gasp as the warmth enveloped her; his eyebrows furrowed at the way her voice shook.

"C...Carlos? Wh-What are you doing here?! You're gonna freeze!" He could hear her pain so clearly that it practically drowned out all of the rain. Leaving just them. She immediately moved to give the jacket back to him.

Shaking his head, he moved around her and took a couple steps down the stairs, kneeling down so he was now directly facing her. He reached forward, his arms on both sides of her neck, and grabbed onto the collar of his jacket - pulling it back over Jane's shoulders.

Her red eyes looking at him in exasperation because she knew he was gonna do that.

He smiled and moved his hands from the already soaked collar down her freezing arms, fingertips gently grazing along her skin. Her lip was still quivering as she tried so desperately to hold her feelings in; his hands stopping when they intertwined with her own.

Neither of them say a word, the never ending shower blanketing their faces. He could see the pout on her face through that wall of raindrops, and it made him smile more.

"Jane..." He squeezed her hands, aware that she was squeezing back, "I'm not going back inside."

She huffed, pulling one of her hands away to wipe her eyes. Her tears being practically invisible among the drops streaming down her face. But he could still see them clear as day.

The pain in her face, the short sobs she lets out, Carlos can feel it all. Each little whimper acting like some sort of blade being pushed into his arms and his chest and his neck. She squeezes onto his hands a little tighter and that's all the sign he needs that she wants him to stay.

He let's everything stay quiet (despite the rain) and still (again, despite the rain) for what feels like hours. It leaves only her pain to echo around inside his head and her tears make a minute feel like a millennium. But he doesn't want to ask, he wants her to tell.

Sometimes she just brushes off her tears as being the result of, "Something silly." And that only pushes her to bury her pain deeper beneath her skin. But he of all people knows how burying the pain deeper only means that it'll work harder to claw its way back out.

So he lets her talk.

And sure enough, after a few more agonizing minutes of tears, she breathes out a shaky sigh. His thumb strokes her knuckle.

"Audrey and I got into a fight..."

Carlos inhaled sharply and nodded; for all the things in Jane's life that he wanted to be a part of Audrey was definitely the exception. He couldn't stand to watch the pretty pink princess tear Jane down any chance she had.

The two of them seemed to reach a mutual dislike of sorts; not to the extent of her issues with Mal, he was Jane's boyfriend after all.

But he knew she didn't think very much of him.

Yet whenever it became unbearable for him to witness his girlfriend getting pelted with backhanded compliments, that was when he remembered that Jane was all Audrey had.

After putting half the kingdom to sleep and turning the other half to stone, the general reception her way was very icy.

The royal family had forgiven her.

Evidently the VKs had forgiven her.

But that wasn't going to fix everything.

And then, there was Jane - bright eyed and willing to put everything in the past. Carlos knew how it felt to be cared for by the fairy, while taken for granted by most, it made his heart soar.

He assumes it leaves a similar effect within Audrey.

But now she had made Jane cry.

All hopes of his sympathy were thrown out the window.

Jane sniffles and continues, "Sh-She's just been going through a lot. Her grandmother has been th-" She pauses in an attempt to calm the tears that seem to get stronger the more she talks. Carlos leans forward in an effort to comfort her, stopping when their knees touch.

The added contact sends a visible wave of calm through her as she lets out a deep breath, "...been throwing her into press conference after press conference."

"Doing damage control..." Carlos mumbles.

Jane nods in response, looking down at their joined hands in her lap.

"We-... I... She had just been standing in the hallway. I just asked her how she thought she did on the Applied Goodness test." Carlos could see her slowly leaning in closer as she spoke, raindrops cascading down her face and rolling off her lips. "Th-That must've been the wrong thing to say to her because she just snapped at me. Yelling about how I should just stop pretending I understand how her head works and how she feels."

Carlos felt his jaw set, yeah Audrey was a lot lower on his list of people to care about.

Jane shut her eyes and let out a sob, "I-I tried to-...to brush it off... I know she's- she's got so much going on. So I-... I said sorry and- and tried to change the subject." She let go of one of his hands, bringing it up to his face and brushing the hair that was plastered to him out of his eyes. While doing so, she continued, "But she refused to let me end it. She...she said she knew it was only a matter of time until I gave up the nice girl act and left her alone. She wishes I would just get over myself."

Carlos felt his blood boil, hair on the back of his neck raise, he wondered if Jane noticed the way his eyes narrowed.

"And then I-...I-"

She breaks down into a fit of sobs, recalling the incident forcing her to relive the pain, giving in and resting her head on his shoulder. Her free hand rests on his chest, Carlos reaches up and places his hand over her's. Eventually, there's a lull and Jane takes the opportunity to gasp out a statement, _"Islappedher."_ She barely spits it out before she falls into another hysterical fit, burying her face into his neck.

He bites his lip, trying his best to hold back a smile or, even worse, a laugh.

Not because the mental image of Jane finally snapping at Audrey is just a little too satisfying, but because Jane doesn't think she's in the wrong with their fight. All of those sobs being caused by the remorse she feels for striking her friend.

Carlos wonders if Jane's remorse is the cause of this downpour.

He squeezes her hand on his chest, letting her know he got what she said. She nods against his shoulder and Carlos is surprised that she continues talking; her voice is trembling but he can still hear what she feels.

"Sh-...She froze for a few seconds... Which makes sense... She did just get slapped." Carlos hums in response, a grin just barely ghosting his face.

_'More like she's shocked that she actually managed to push The Fairy Goddaughter to her limit.'_

She let's out a loud groan and Carlos can now feel the warm tears seeping into his shirt, "Oohhh I really hope she doesn't swell up! Wh-What am I gonna do if she does?!" That sends her over the edge and Carlos takes that as a sign to wrap his free arm around her, bringing his fingers to her head to comb through her hair. The smile on his face making guilt pang in his chest.

"I-I know you think this is funny bu-...but I'm... I'm not... I..." Jane murmurs against his neck, her breath is warm and, combining that with the feeling of being caught red handed, Carlos can feel the hair on the back of his neck raise.

He licks his lips and clears his throat, squeezing her hand just a little tighter, "I... I don't think this is funny... Anytime you cry I- I think I die a little inside..."

The hand on his chest slides up slowly to wrap around his neck. He presses a kiss to her hair in response to the new found closeness. Jane reciprocates with a soft peck on his neck, he hugs her tighter. He can still feel her tears mixing together with the rain.

"I... I'm just glad that you didn't let her convince you that you were in the wrong..." That's when he feels her go stiff against him, the peace surrounding them has been penetrated by the storm.

As the wind whips at them, Jane suddenly stands up and Carlos can see the ice in her eyes.

"Because I of all people knows how she feels!" Her voice is loud, but trembling, "I mean... I am the sole reason that Ben's coronation almost became the end of Auradon!" His jacket slides off her shoulders, soaked in a puddle at her feet, "I dishonored the fairy name and all for the sake of me... Me wanting to be pretty!"

Carlos stands up as she begins to choke on her sobs.

She isn't yelling those words at him, he knows where all of her frustration is directed. It's always herself.

Her hands instantly find his chest and she grips onto his shirt, afraid that she's going to get swept away.

Swept away by the wind.

By her fears.

But Carlos is always there to hold onto her.

As she falls back into a fit of sobs, Carlos presses his forehead against her's.

"H-How... How am I any different from her?"

At that, Carlos snorts.

Jane pouts at him, the closest she can get to glaring at anybody. He's the best at bringing the pout out of her weirdly enough.

"Carlos I'm trying to be serious here."

He nods, a short giggle breaking through. Jane takes a step back and crosses her arms; Carlos quickly reaches out and grabs onto her right arm. He's biting his lip to hold back another laugh - her eyes are still swollen and laughing at her isn't helping.

"How long have you felt like this?" He smiles when she lets him lower his grasp to her hand.

She sniffles, her gaze falls down to her feet.

He continues, "Because it is the furthest thing from the truth Janey..." He sees her head just barely bob a soft nod.

She knows.

He knows she knows.

"You've grown a lot since then. You didn't let that mistake pin you down."

She sniffles, "You didn't really let me stay pinned down Carlos."

He shook his head, "No... I asked you to dance... You're the one who decided to say yes..." She presses her forehead against his again, her free hand gripping the front of his shirt. He pauses for a moment just to look at her soaked face, bringing his hand up to wipe the droplets from her cheek. It doesn't accomplish anything, but it sets his chest ablaze.

"Audrey isn't even letting herself say yes."

Jane lets out a shaky sigh, closing her eyes.

His heart aches, he wraps his arms around her and pulls her into a hug.

She nuzzles her face into his shoulder.

"Maybe..." He hesitates, not sure if this is something she wants to hear, "...maybe you're not the one who needs to save her Janey..."

He hears her gulp.

She lets out a gasp, created from her trying to hold so much in.

"Wh-" she chokes on her words, he squeezes her tighter. "Who else is there?" She breathes out.

He feels her shiver in his grasp, the cold rain has finally managed to turn her lips blue. Yet despite that Carlos finds everything around him feeling warm - bordering on sweltering. Jane truly is not aware of how deep her kindness is, how patient she is with the frustrating circumstances around her.

Slowly, he pulls away from her and is cruelly brought back to reality by the resilient showers.

Cupping her cheek, Carlos gives her the only honest answer he can find, "I don't know..."

_"But is it really your problem?"_

He almost says, but holds his tongue. If Jane honestly believes that she is Audrey's last chance at being accepted than was he really allowed to step all over that?

Even through the downpour, Carlos can see her huff and chew on the inside of her cheek. Neutral responses were something of a pet peeve to her - which was perfectly understandable in his book.

"All I know is..." Carlos starts, her eyes lock onto his, "Audrey has been sinking for a long time and you've been trying to hold her up. Trying to convince her to start swimming in one direction - any direction - but..." He hesitates as he sees her expression shift into something along the lines of disappointment.

"She's just dragging me down instead of treading herself up..." Jane finishes, finding her way back against his shoulder.

He nods and tilts his head so it just barely taps her's. They remain silent for a few minutes, forcing Carlos to focus on just how soaked he is and how much he genuinely hates it. Best swimmer in the group or not, he couldn't understand why anyone would wanna get wet for fun.

_"That's probably the wrong choice of words..."_ He thinks, he can feel his ears getting hot and he rolls his eyes because he knows Jay would have laughed and teased him about that.

His thoughts are broken when Jane squeezes onto him a little tighter and sighs against his ear. He shifts a little because it kinda tickled before saying, "You ready to get the hell inside?"

She answered by pulling back and pressing a quick kiss on his lips before turning around to retrieve his long-forgotten jacket.

Carlos lets out a silly little chuckle, face bright red, and follows after her.


End file.
